Free resources about the Ohio Cleveland Mission:
- Mission address and phone number
- Mission map
- Video interviews with returned missionaries
- Missionary blogs
- Facebook groups
- LDS Mission t-shirts and gifts
- List of past mission presidents
- Cultural articles written by returned missionaries
- Survey with RMs
*Other Mission Pages: Ohio LDS Missions.
Ohio Cleveland Mission Address
Here’s a recent address for the Cleveland Mission. We try to keep this information up to date, but it’s a good idea to check the address with several sources, including your mission packet or the mission office.
Ohio Cleveland Mission
25002 Westwood Rd
Westlake, OH 44145
Phone Number: 1-440-777-0042
Mission President: President Michael D. Brown
Ohio Cleveland Mission Map
Here’s a link to the mission map for the Ohio Cleveland Mission (LDS). To access the official LDS.org map for the Cleveland Mission:
Videos with Cleveland RMs
Here are in-depth YouTube video interviews with returned missionaries from the Cleveland Mission. We interview hundreds of returned missionaries each year, so check back regularly to see new RM interviews.
LDS-Friendly Videos about Ohio
Here are LDS-friendly educational videos about Ohio. We scoured YouTube to find the best quality videos about Ohio, that are free from inappropriate music, immodesty and profanity.
Ohio Cleveland Missionary Blogs
Here’s a list of LDS missionary blogs for the Ohio Cleveland Mission. This list includes the missionary’s name, URL and when their blog was updated.
Ohio Cleveland Mission Groups
Here are Ohio Cleveland Mission Groups- for LDS missionary moms, returned missionaries, mission presidents and other alumni of the Cleveland Mission.
- Ohio Cleveland Mission Facebook Group (578 members)
- Cleveland Mission 1996-99 (The Kohlerts) Group (273 members)
- Ohio Cleveland Mission Facebook Group (36 members)
- Ohio Cleveland Mission Facebook Group (31 members)
- Cleveland Mission: Pres. Phillip Rasmussen Group (20 members)
- Cleveland/Akron Mission 1984-85 Group (3 members)
- Cleveland Mission Memory Book Group (2 members)
Ohio Cleveland Mission T-Shirts
Here are T-shirts for the Ohio Cleveland Mission!
Shirt designs include Ohio Cleveland Mission logo/emblem shirts and Called to Serve shirts. The shirts make great gifts for pre-missionaries, returned missionaries and missionaries currently serving. LDS Mission shirts come in all sizes: Small, Medium, Large, Extra Large, up to 4XL. The mission designs are printed on white shirts and are shipped to you.
*Simply click on a shirt design to view the details and submit an order. The designs on mission t-shirts may also be printed on other LDS mission gifts, including: Ohio Cleveland missionary aprons, Christmas stockings, ties, pillow cases, teddy bears and Christmas ornaments.
*Click here to browse Cleveland Mission gifts
Ohio Cleveland Mission Presidents
Here’s a list of current and past Mission Presidents of the Cleveland Mission.
- 2015-2018, Michael D. Brown
- 2012-2015, Michael L. Vellinga
- 2009-2012, Darwin D. Sorrense
- 2006-2009, Karl Brent Sommers
- 2000-2003, Earl Rex Cutler
- 1990-1993, Franklin Nelson Davis
Ohio LDS Statistics (2016)
- Church Membership: 60,971
- Missions: 3
- Temples: 1
- Congregations: 127
- Family History Centers: 46
Helpful Articles about Ohio
Ohio Cleveland Missionary Survey
Here are survey responses from Ohio Cleveland RMs, to give you a snapshot into what it’s like to live in the mission.
When did you serve?
- 2013-2015 (Danielle)
- 1995-1997 (Sam)
- 2012-2014 (Troy)
- 1997-1999 (Heather)
- 2012-2014 (Lacee)
- 1997-1998 (Jennie)
- Apr 2013-Oct 2014 (McKayla)
- 2013-2015 (Carina)
- 2012-2014 (Jonathon)
- 2007-2009 (Brent)
- 1987-1988 (Raymond)
- 2000-2002 (Dallin)
- 2002-2004 (Kim)
- 2002-2004 (Abraham)
- 2014-2015 (Kimberlee)
What areas did you serve in?
- Cuyahoga Falls, New Philadephia, Uhrichsville, Shaker Heights, Amherst, St. Mary’s, Jefferson, Kirkland and Canton. (Abraham)
What were some favorite foods?
- The buckeyes are amazing! Also I really like pierogies. (Danielle)
- Chicken gizzards and hearts. General Tso’ chicken. Macaroni and Cheese with tomato soup in it. (Sam)
- I served Spanish speaking, so I loved all the Hispanic food. There is a lot of pizza back East too. (Troy)
- Perogies. (Heather)
- Quesadillas, sandwiches, cereal, salad. (Lacee)
- Ice cream! There’s lots of good ice cream in Ohio. 🙂 (McKayla)
- Chipotle, chili, all sorts of soups. (Carina)
- Graters ice cream. (Brent)
- Mac and cheese with chile and ranch. (Kim)
- Crooked river grill located in Cuyahoga Falls. (Abraham)
What was a funny experience?
- There are so many! The people are so friendly and every day is an adventure! My favorite was walking straight into a bush with my companion while tracting! (Danielle)
- Tearing my nostril on a car antennae when a missionary pulled me away from a car when I wasn’t expecting it. (Sam)
- Whoever serves in inner city Cleveland or Akron will have a lot of funny/intense experiences. The funniest experiences were when we would talk to people on the streets of Cleveland because the majority of people were either high or drunk. (Troy)
- On a Sunday night, I was reading in the Bible and was prompted to memorize a particular verse in Hebrews. The next day, our P-day, I was grocery shopping and an older gentleman approached me and said, “Hebrews 13:1” and I was able to respond, “Let brotherly love continue.” He walked away saying, “Amen, Sister! Amen!” (Heather)
- We put too much popcorn in an air popper at an investigators house and we had popcorn flying all over. (Lacee)
- Helping Brother Pratt out by participating in a pretend natural disaster. At the end of the activity out of 5 missionaries (2 elders and 3 sisters) only Elder Scott and I were at the starting location he had to drive just the two of us to the local Hospital to pick up our companions. It was strange as well as funny especially since I had only been in the mission field for a little bit over a month at the time. (Jennie)
- Lots of people have stone geese on their front porches. You can actually buy clothes for the stone geese! One time my companion and I saw someone who had shoved a baby onesie on their stone goose. So keep an eye out for those. Also, we once met a “practicing atheist” and a “pagan” who was hiding behind the door because he wasn’t wearing clothes. 🙂 (McKayla)
- My companion and I were shoveling snow off of random driveways for service one winter day. A man in a truck drove by and then came back, unloaded his snowblower, and helped us. He was surprised when we told him this was not our driveway. At least we inspired someone else to serve! (Carina)
- Street contacting around Ohio State University, talking to this guy who keeps taking about how much he wants to quit smoking as he’s lighting up a cigarette. My companion says, “can I help you,” which throws the guy off for a second as he snatches the cigarette out of the guys mouth and stomps on it. Really bold, I couldn’t stop laughing. (Brent)
- One of elder got stopped for speeding on the way to zone conference. (Raymond)
- Knocking on doors and getting chased by a dog. (Kim)
- We got locked out of our apartment in Jefferson Ohio, on the third floor, a member brought a ladder to help us back in through the window, but it wasn’t long enough so I had to jump through the window and almost fell because my belt got caught. My companion was underneath me screaming that he was going to catch me. (With Elder Youngclause). (Abraham)
What was a crazy/dangerous experience?
- Driving in ice storms! (Danielle)
- Being chased out of a trailer park by a guy with a shotgun. (Sam)
- I saw a dead person that was hung from the monkey bars in a park in Cleveland. The image will never leave my mind. But that is really rare! (Troy)
- I came across many people under the influence of drugs or alcohol. (Lacee)
- In one apartment, our downstairs neighbors were marijuana addicts. I didn’t know what weed smells like, so it took me getting my new companion to tell me that that’s why my past comp and I had been so hungry all the time! It was hard for us to get out of the apartment despite the drug problem. (McKayla)
- One day were trying to find a potential investigator’s home when we passed a man carrying some buckets. We asked to help and he said, “You want to help in those clothes?” We did. However we did not know we were carrying buckets of milk through heaps of cow manure. We proceeded to carry the buckets to a place where we filled bottles and got to bottle feed baby cows! So there we were in the mud in our skirts feeding cows. Crazy random. (Carina)
- Knocking on doors out in the middle of nowhere. I later realized that someone could have murdered us, taken our car, parked it in their garage and nobody would ever know. We easily could have disappeared. (Brent)
- Guns, guns in our faces, gun shots all night. (Dallin)
- Getting shot at on New Year’s in east Cleveland. (Kim)
- In downtown Cleveland a gang member told us to get out of his neighborhood. We gave him a Book of Mormon- he thought we were the police. (Abraham)
What was a spiritual experience?
- Baptisms and Kirtland trips were always the best!! (Danielle)
- Having missionary meetings in the Kirtland temple. (Sam)
- Taking investigators to Kirltand to have them experience the spirit of the Restoration of the Gospel is some of my fondest memories. The school of the prophets is an incredible place where the Spirit is guaranteed to testify of the truthfulness of the Gospel and testify of the Prophet, Joseph Smith. (Troy)
- We were challenged to let the investigator speak first after a prayer. We waited about 15 minutes. The Spirit was throbbing. I went home soon after, so I’m not sure what happened. (Heather)
- When an investigator or less active has the desire to follow Jesus Christ. (Lacee)
- Christmas conference in the Kirtland Temple. Along with spending 7 months in Chardon and Kirtland where a lot of things happened in early church history. (Jennie)
- We hadn’t had much success recently and we were starting to feel down. Our investigator with the most potential seemed ready to be dropped, and our area was just slow. Then, we got a phone call from a woman who was sweet, but barely progressing, and she told us what day she wanted to be baptized. The lesson before we’d invited her to pray about whether she should be baptized, but she seemed very hesitant. Then, she gave us a call and had received her answer! Our next lesson with her was full of the Spirit–she really knew she needed to be baptized! It was amazing. (McKayla)
- Singing in the Kirtland Temple. The Spirit of God was there no doubt. (Carina)
- Hearing investigators pray never failed to bring the spirit. (Brent)
- Baptizing a whole family the night before I came home. (Kim)
- Too many to pick one. (Abraham)
What are some interesting facts about the Cleveland Mission?
- There is so much church history there! It’s the best! Also words never sound the way they are spelled. (Danielle)
- Vacuums are called “sweepers”. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is there. (Sam)
- Kirtland is in the mission. It is not everyday you can say you served in a place where Christ our Savior has shown his face (multiple times). (Troy)
- Kirtland was in our mission. Awesome! They also vacuumed up leaves off the side of the road. (Heather)
- There are many church history sites- The Kirtland Visitors Center, The Kirtland temple, The Morley farm and the John Johnson farm. (Lacee)
- The Kirtland/Hyrum area of the mission is sometime called the cradle of Church History. The Savior appeared 5 times in various parts of the mission. The First Temple built by the church the Kirtland Temple is in the mission along with several church history sites in the Kirtland and Hyrum areas. (Jennie)
- The Christmas Story house is in Cleveland. Oliver Cowdry’s post-apostasy place of residence was Tiffin Ohio, on the west side of the state. And of course, KIRTLAND! (McKayla)
- Gets down to -30 degrees on the winter. Amish country in Ohio. Beautiful rural areas. (Carina)
- You will never find crazier people. Ohio is loaded with the most insane individuals. (Brent)
- The Church was organized here and it’s where my Savior stood in front of Joseph Smith. (Kim)
What was the weather like?
- It’s always super humid. It’s really hot in the summer and freezing cold in the winter! (Danielle)
- Cold in the winter and hot in the summer. (Sam)
- Humid! Cold in winter and hot and muggy in summer. Temperatures like Utah. (Troy)
- Cold and icy in the winter, hot and humid in the summer. Rainy all year. (Heather)
- Very very cold in the winter and hot and humid in the summer. (Lacee)
- Hot and humid in the summer and bone chilling cold (could not put on enough layers to stay warm cold) in the winter. Beautiful fall colors especially in the Chardon/Kirtland area. (Jennie)
- Cold and wet; hot and wet. Unpredictable. Two words: lake effect. 🙂 (McKayla)
- Humid hot summers. Perfect springs and falls. FREEZING and long winters. Down to -30 degrees. (Carina)
- Summers are warm, winters are frigid. Most of the mission is humid, so 20 degrees in Ohio feels like 0 degrees in Utah. It rains frequently; while I was there we had 17 straight days of rain that caused mild flooding concerns in some area. (Very mild concerns, mainly just bad road conditions if the drains backed up.) (Jonathon)
- Super hot and humid in the summer, overcast all winter long. You’ll never see the sun. (Brent)
- Rainy sunny snowing humid all in one day. (Kim)
- Freezing, so, so cold. (Abraham)
What do you like about the place/people you served?
- The people are so friendly! (Danielle)
- Very humble and hard working. (Sam)
- I love everything about the people I served. No matter what happens, you will gain a love for anyone that you serve. (Troy)
- I appreciated the diversity. (Heather)
- Many people are in the lower class. They are very humble and ready for a positive change. (Lacee)
- There is something special about being able to serve a mission where a lot happened early in Church History, Kirtland and Hyrum are places you can read about but going to visit those places you feel something that you can’t describe to someone else unless they have been there and felt it as well. (Jennie)
- Mostly humble and kind. (Carina)
- The whole state is beautiful. The people in Ohio are completely out of their minds; best stories I’ve ever heard. (Brent)
- The people are poor but happy in East Cleveland. The Amish were amazing. (Kim)
- Very diverse, you can serve in the inner city and also in the country. (Abraham)
Any packing/clothing advice?
- Bring lots of warm clothes!! The more layers the better. (Danielle)
- Warm clothes for winter. Don’t use antiperspirant, only use deodorant or your the armpits of your shirts will turn yellow. (Sam)
- Bring thermal garments and a good waterproof coat. It gets cold! (Troy)
- Leggings that you can layer and wear socks with and a good pair of boots under your dress. It will save you in the winter. Also, a good rain coat. (Heather)
- A warm down long coat and big thick winter boots. (Lacee)
- Lots and lots of Thermals and any thing you can layer to keep warm., Wool socks, warm coat, hat gloves and scarf and warm winter boots for the winter. Breathable clothing for the humid summer. (Jennie)
- Waterproof boots!!!! Or else your feet will freeze off. Also, warm tights to where under thick skirts. Loose light-weight shirts and skirts for the summer. (Carina)
- Pack layers, because the weather can change quickly in a single day. Cold-weather clothing is a must, water proof if possible. (Jonathon)
- Layers. (Brent)
- Rain jacket is a must. Warm clothes and pair of good gloves. (Kim)
- Don’t skimp on your overcoat, buy a nice heavy trench coat. (Abraham)
What blessings did you receive from serving a mission?
- It has changed my life. My testimony is so much stronger and I feel like my life is more centered on Christ now. (Danielle)
- Learning how to lead. Learning how to communicate things I value to other people. Having a strong testimony of the gospel. (Sam)
- All the blessings I have I can relate back to my mission. It has been the foundation block for my future. (Troy)
- Countless. I think the best blessings were the lessons on agency. (Heather)
- Many! My family was blessed. My sister decided to serve a mission while I was gone because of my influence. It also prepared me for my marriage. (Lacee)
- Serving a mission strengthen my testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. Help my communication skills took me way outside my comfort zone. (Jennie)
- Seeing other people being brought into the gospel, a knowledge of who I am and what I am capable of, help in knowing who I want to marry, and younger brothers who are excited to serve. (Carina)
- Best learning opportunity. (Brent)
- A testimony that my Savior lives and loves me. My future wife joined the church. My family at home was blessed. (Kim)
- Too many to count. My family is the biggest one and my complete knowledge of my Savior Jesus Christ. (Abraham)
What are some skills you gained on your mission?
- I’m a lot better at talking to people and being social. I’m also better at noticing ways to serve others. (Danielle)
- Talking to strangers. Listening and understanding. Hard Work. (Sam)
- Social skills, problem solving, patience, leadership skills, self reliance, and trusting in the Lord. (Troy)
- Speaking in public, talking on the phone, study skills, how to wisely fill time, postponing or withholding judgement – realizing everyone has a story. (Heather)
- Cooking, teaching, talking to everyone, knowledge, church history knowledge. (Lacee)
- Learned how to communicate better with people. How to live with and be with a companion who you didn’t always think the same way or get along with all the time. (Jennie)
- Besides the blessings of a greater testimony and greater teaching skills, I learned how to write a good talk quickly for church. Also, in order to spend time with an old couple so we could teach the nonmember husband, I was taught to crochet on my mission as well. (McKayla)
- Speaking in public, organizing large groups of people, studying the scriptures, setting a schedule, communication with others. (Carina)
- How to coordinate with people. How to articulate a thought. How to plan. (Brent)
- Reading got better and studying habits. Writing got better. Then I went to East Cleveland for 14 months and just went down hill but gained a love for the people. (Kim)
- Public speaking and a love for hard work. (Abraham)
What do you wish you knew/did at the beginning of your mission?
- I wish I had brought more clothes and known more scriptures I could teach with. (Danielle)
- I wish I had a better understanding of the Book of Mormon. (Sam)
- I wish I knew more about Preach My Gospel. I wish I would’ve studied more about Ohio too. (Troy)
- Things happen in the Lord’s timing. (Heather)
- Give it your all because it goes fast and you can never go back. (Lacee)
- God is forgiving. If you try your very hardest, even if you have days that are worse than others, He still loves you, forgives you, and helps you to improve if you let Him. (McKayla)
- I wish I knew that I cannot be perfect at everything, but I can still do great things. (Carina)
- I wish I had studied Preach My Gospel before my mission. Missionary work is based on this inspired book, and it is the best resource, other than prayer, to missionary work. (Jonathon)
- I wouldn’t be so hard on myself or the members. (Brent)
- It’s so easy- all you have to do is obey the rules and have fun. (Abraham)
Any advice/testimony for pre-missionaries going to Cleveland?
- Just love every single minute. It goes by so fast! (Danielle)
- Love the people you serve and serve with. Don’t judge ANYBODY! (Sam)
- STUDY PREACH MY GOSPEL. Know church history, especially because Kirtland is in the mission. (Troy)
- Make sure you have a testimony and a familiarity with the Bible, not to bash, but to be able to converse about it to build on common beliefs. The most common thing I heard on the porch was, “I already have a Bible!” (Heather)
- Just do it. God will always make away. He will always bless you. (Lacee)
- Read Joseph Smith’s Kirtland and the Savior in Kirtland both written by Karl Anderson before you leave. These books give you a little bit of background information about the Kirtland area during 1831-1839. (Jennie)
- Be kind. People will ignore you and mock you and avoid you. Be kind and forgiving. Those Christlike attributes will help you achieve more success than any teaching skills. (McKayla)
- There is such teaching power at the Kirtland Visitor’s Center. Study up on the church history there and take your investigators there!!!!! You will impact more people than you will ever know. I know the Lord works through His missionaries. (Carina)
- The Ohio is a special place, and Northern Ohio is a place of prophecy. While you serve here, your understanding of the Doctrine and Covenants will flourish. Serving a mission will cause your strength of charity to increase dramatically, allowing you to care deeply for people that you only just met. You will leave a part of your heart in Ohio; returning there always feels like going home. (Jonathon)
- There are extreme levels of joy and pain, enjoy them all. (Brent)
- Read your scriptures, gain a testimony before you go and learn to work hard and be positive and motivated. (Kim)
What was a funny language mistake?
- They speak English, but they say things differently. Every time they called the vacuum, “the sweeper,” it made me smile! (Danielle)
- I spoke my native language. (Lacee)